The incidence of cancer is on the rise in Malaysia. It can strike anyone
regardless of colour, creed or status. Nearly 70,000 new cases were reported
over a two-year period recently, with breast cancer the biggest threat. The new
cases were diagnosed among Malaysians in Peninsular Malaysia between 2003 and
2005, according to a report released in early 2008 on the incidence of the
disease in West Malaysia.

The Cancer Incidence in Peninsular Malaysia 2003-2005 report, published by the
National Cancer Registry (NCR), states that the total 67,792 new cases were
diagnosed among 29,596 males (43.7 per cent) and 38,196 females (56.3 per
cent). The annual crude rate for males was 100.2 per cent per 100,000
population, and 132.1 per cent per 100,000 for females.

The most frequent cancer during this period in Malaysians was breast cancer (18
per cent) followed by large bowel cancer (11.9 per cent) and lung cancer (7.4
per cent).

Despite a grim outlook, all hope is not lost. Between 30 and 50 per cent of
cancer cases can be prevented if you practice a healthy lifestyle, undergo
regular checks for early detection, and seek the right treatment when
necessary.
Below are the four most common types of cancer.
Click on a diagram to learn more about each.

Cancer is an umbrella name given to a group of over
200 diseases. Of these, only a few predominate in each country. In Malaysia, the
incidence of cancer is on the rise. It can strike anyone regardless of
colour, creed or status.

In fact, nearly 70,000 new cases were reported over between 2003 and 2005,
with breast cancer posing the biggest threat to the health of Malaysian women
of all walks of life.

According to a report released in January 2008 on the incidence of the
disease in West Malaysia, a total of 67,792 new cases were diagnosed among
29,596 males (43.7 per cent) and 38,196 females (56.3 per cent), states the
Cancer Incidence in Peninsular Malaysia 2003-2005 report published by the
National Cancer Registry (NCR).

Cancer can affect any organ of the body. The most common cancers affecting
males are cancers of the lung, nasopharynx, mouth, stomach and liver. Besides
breast cancer, many Malaysian women are also being threatened by cancers of
the cervix, lung and stomach.

THE THREE TYPES OF CANCER:

.

Carcinomas

This usually occurs in rapidly dividing tissues, such as cells that cover
and line our bodies, including the skin, colon, breast, liver and breathing
passages. This is the most common form of cancer.

.

Sarcomas

This type of cancer generally occurs in more slowly dividing tissues, such
as muscle and nerve tissues.

.

Leukaemias

This is a cancer of tissues that form blood cells. It is also referred to
as cancer of the blood.

Cancer cells are abnormal cells. They keep dividing and forming
more cells without control or order. A mass of extra tissue, called a growth
or tumour, is formed and can either be benign or malignant.

Benign tumours are not cancerous. They can be removed and in most
cases, don’t make a return. Benign tumours do not spread to other parts of
the body and are rarely a threat to life.

Malignant tumours, on the other hand, are cancerous
and can spread to invade and damage nearby tissues and organs. Cancer cells
can also break away from the malignant tumour and enter the bloodstream or
lymphatic system. This is how cancer spreads from the original or primary
tumour to form new tumours in other parts of the body. This spread of cancer
is called metastasis

Since MAKNA's establishment, it has been our
dream to see that an institute be set up to provide comprehensive and
up-to-date facilities to cancer patients especially the less fortunate. Hence,
in collaboration with PPUKM, Institut Kanser MAKNA - Pusat Perubatan Universiti
Kebangsaan Malaysia
(IKM-PPUKM) was started. It is located within the compound of PPUKM in Cheras, Kuala Lumpur.

The collaboration with PPUKM is of great significance to MAKNA.
IKM-PPUKM is a significant place of hope for victims of cancer. The cancer
institute was incepted on 19 April 1999. IKM-PPUKM aspires to be one of the
most effective and compassionate cancer treatment centre in the region. MAKNA's
aim is to make even the poorest accessible to the best treatment facility. IKM-PPUKM consists of Wad Onkologi Tengku Ampuan Afzan, Sub
Basement Radiotherapy and a Bone Marrow Transplant Unit which is
one of the largest in the country. IKM-PPUKM only treats patients that are referred
to it by government doctors or private clinic. Those seeking treatment here
fall into two categories. The first group are those who are financially
challenged and therefore either does not have to pay or pay a nominal sum. The
second group is made up those who can afford to pay for the treatment.

Nearly 70,000 new cancer cases were diagnosed among Malaysians in Peninsular
Malaysia between 2003 and 2005, according to a report released in early 2008 on
the incidence of the disease in West Malaysia.

The Cancer Incidence in Peninsular Malaysia 2003-2005 report, published by the
National Cancer Registry (NCR), states that the total 67,792 new cases were
diagnosed among 29,596 males (43.7 per cent) and 38,196 females (56.3 per
cent). The annual crude rate for males was 100.2 per cent per 100,000
population, and 132.1 per cent per 100,000 for females.

The most frequent cancer during this period in Malaysians was breast cancer (18
per cent) followed by large bowel cancer (11.9 per cent) and lung cancer (7.4
per cent).

A
surprising finding was the high ranking of leukaemia among Malay males, though
the fact was consistent with the Kelantan Cancer Registry Report 1999-2003,
which found the cancer the third most frequent among all males, and second
highest among Malay males. In contrast, in the Penang Cancer Registry of the
same period, leukaemia featured eighth among males and females.

Yet another unexpected finding was that prostate cancer was the second most
common cancer in Indian males. The cancer ranked fourth among male cancers in Malaysia.
Interestingly, the age specific incidence rate in Chinese and Indians in Malaysia were higher than those in Taiwan, Hong Kong
and Mumbai. This finding for Malaysian Indian males “could be due to chance
variation in a smaller sample compared to the other major ethnic groups,” said
the report.

Among Malay males, large bowel cancer was the most common cancer followed by
leukaemia, lung cancer, lymphoma and prostate cancer.

Large bowel cancer was also the leading cause of cancer in Chinese males,
followed by cancers of the lung, nasopharynx, prostate and stomach. In Indian
males, the most frequent cancers were large bowel, prostate, stomach, lung and
lymphoma.

Breast cancer remains the most common cancer among women across all three
ethnic groups. For Malay women, this is followed by large bowel, cervix uteri,
leukaemia and ovarian cancers. Among Chinese females, it was large bowel
cancer, cervix uteri, lung and stomach, while the incidence of cancer among the
peninsula’s Indian females was followed by cancers of the cervix uteri, mouth,
large bowel and corpus uteri.

The third NCR report describes the morbidity burden of cancer from January 1st
2003 to December 31st 2005. It is mainly a descriptive report of the data
collected during the period alongside a detailed analysis of topography and
morphology, interpretation and comparison of the data.

Between 2003 and 2005, the report states that the NCR received 42,963, 48,549
and 46,048 notifications respectively from various hospitals, laboratories and
clinics, both public and private.

The NCR is a service supported by the Ministry of Health to collect information
about cancer incidence in Malaysia.
The information is vital in planning the evaluation of cancer services by the
governmental agencies, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), private providers
and the industry.

The objectives of the NCR include determining the disease burden attributable
to cancer by quantifying the magnitude of cancer morbidity and mortality, and
its geographic and temporal trends in Malaysia, and evaluating cancer
treatment, control and prevention programmes